Monmouth Football earned their second win of the season on Saturday, Sept. 19 against UAlbany to avenge last year’s heartbreaking defeat.
Despite the team being most known for its offense, it was Monmouth’s defense that came through and secured the win for the Hawks.
On the first drive of the game, the Hawks defense made their presence known early. On the second play from scrimmage, UAlbany’s first pass of the game was intercepted by senior linebacker Ryan Russo, who returned it to the house untouched to give Monmouth a 7-0 lead less than a minute into the game. The interception was Russo’s third of his Monmouth career, and it was his second pick six.
The Hawks defense rode the momentum from the pick six into the next drive, as UAlbany was only able to get one first down before a third down sack by sophomore Mounir Keshen ended the drive. The sack was Keshen’s first of his collegiate career.
Monmouth’s first offensive drive of the game ended in a punt, which was followed up by a UAlbany three-and-out which once again ended in a sack, this time by senior JJ Lewis.
Monmouth’s offense came to life on its second drive. After converting a 4th & 1 at midfield, quarterback Frankie Weaver took a shot down field and found redshirt senior Gavin Nelson, who beat his defender and ended up scoring a 46-yard touchdown. The score was the second of the season for the preseason All-CAA wide receiver, and it gave Monmouth its largest lead of the season up to that point at 14-0.
UAlbany’s offense finally put some momentum together on their fourth drive of the game. After barely converting a 4th & 8 at midfield, the Great Danes put a solid drive together and scored a touchdown on a 10-yard run by junior running back Joey Koch, cutting the Monmouth lead to 14-7 early in the second quarter.
The deep ball was something Monmouth was so good at last season, but struggled with early in this season. However, those struggles went away quickly as on Monmouth’s next drive after a 16-yard rush by Elijah Jennings, Weaver once again took a deep shot, this time finding redshirt junior Tra Neal open, beating two defenders for a 60-yard touchdown and re-extending the Monmouth lead to 14 points.
UAlbany started off their next drive promisingly after a facemask penalty on the Hawks, but the drive stalled in Monmouth territory and the Great Danes were forced to punt. Monmouth also punted on their drive, giving UAlbany the ball back.
The Great Danes were able to get a solid drive going once again, reaching the Monmouth red zone for the second time in the game. This time however, the Hawks defense made a stand and standout defensive back Jaeden Jones picked off UAlbany quarterback Kai Colón in the end zone to end the drive. The interception was the first takeaway of the season for Monmouth’s captain and All-CAA player. The Hawks maintained their 21-7 lead heading into halftime.
On Monmouth’s first drive of the second half, the offense picked up right where it left off. A 42-yard completion to Neal put Monmouth in the redzone, and a goal line run by redshirt sophomore Nazir Treadwell that was initially ruled short of the end zone was overturned via review, giving Monmouth their fourth touchdown of the game and extending the lead to 28-7. This score was Monmouth’s final points of the game.
UAlbany responded to Monmouth’s touchdown with one of their own, as Colón threw his first touchdown pass of the game to cut the lead to 28-14 with five minutes remaining in the third quarter. Monmouth’s offense kept rolling on their next drive, but an interception deep in UAlbany territory ended any chance of extending the lead.
The Great Danes couldn’t respond after the interception, as another third down sack by the Hawks ended the UAlbany drive. Redshirt junior Donovan Dyson got the sack that ended the drive.
After a Hawks three and out, UAlbany scored another touchdown to cut the lead to eight with five minutes to go in the game. A critical missed extra point meant the Great Danes needed a touchdown and a two-point conversion to tie the game.
On Monmouth’s next drive, UAlbany got their second interception of the game and nearly returned it for a touchdown, but they got stopped short at Monmouth’s three-yard line. Despite stopping a pick six, the Hawks defense was caught with their backs against the wall.
After two runs for minimal gain and an incomplete pass, UAlbany was faced with a 4th & goal. Once again, Monmouth’s defense came through with a critical sack, this time by redshirt sophomore Hunter Watson, ending the drive and giving Monmouth the ball back with a little over two minutes remaining in the game. One first down secured a Monmouth victory, and they got it via a 14-yard rush by redshirt freshman Kenny Smith Jr., giving Monmouth a 28-20 victory.
The win was sweet for the Hawks, as they avenged a heartbreaking loss from a season ago. In the final game of the season, Monmouth, sitting at 9-2 and bound for the FCS Playoffs, was upset 31-24 by UAlbany at home, and as a result was knocked out of the postseason. The victory was the first for the Hawks at UAlbany since 2006. They had lost five straight road games to the Great Danes prior to this game.
Weaver finished with 205 yards passing and two touchdowns on just 15 attempts, averaging over 18 yards per completion. Neal had his best game of the season, catching five passes for 138 yards and a touchdown. Smith Jr. also had another strong game on the ground, rushing for 88 yards on 17 carries.
Ultimately, it was the defense that came through for Monmouth. Five sacks in the game, including four on third or fourth down, was what made the difference for the Hawks. UAlbany’s defense did not get a single sack in the entire game.
After the win, Monmouth is sitting at 2-2 overall on the season and 2-0 in conference play. They will play their final nonconference game of the regular season on Saturday at Dartmouth. UAlbany is also sitting at 2-2, although they are 1-1 in conference play. They will also travel to face an Ivy League opponent on Saturday, as they will take on the Princeton Tigers at Princeton Stadium.
